Embracing a slow-living self-employed life - Claire Stephenson, PR Professional & Media Strategist

The Last Rung, is back, with a new name! Here's whats new and improved.

My guest in this episode is Claire Williams. Claire fell into a career in financial services but knew that she wanted more from life than completing dull and repetitive tasks and counting down the days until the weekend. She retrained as a copywriter and started doing freelance copywriting alongside her day job. At the start of January 2022, she entered the world of full-time freelancing. Claire helps her clients connect with their target audience by crafting words that make them excited to take the desired next step. She loves being a full-time copywriter and has found a career she is truly passionate about. Today we’re talking about how to prepare for making the leap, ridiculous perceptions of the freelance industry and taking charge of your own career and business. ...... Claire’s recommendations: Female Copywriter’s Alliance (FCA) Survival Skills for Freelancers by Sarah Townsend Everything is Figureoutable: How One Simple Belief Can Help Us Overcome Any Obstacle and Create Unstoppable Success by Marie Forleo Connect with Claire at: Website Instagram LinkedIn Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Louise Harman. Louise is an Intuitive Coach, guiding women on their spiritual journeys to reconnect with and reclaim who they truly are. She offers coaching packages and runs a Coven for Magickal women in business. Lou works with women to create more freedom and abundance in their lives by stepping into their authentic selves, unapologetically. Lou is currently based in Kent, UK and lives with her 2 black cats although she plans on moving to beautiful Barbados in the future. Whereas previously we have done a live together in Louise’s community which we lovingly called “Why are we so shit at looking after ourselves?’ this one shall be known as “Why do we never bloody believe in ourselves?’ Today we’re talking about self-belief, backing yourself fully, a bit of woowoo and beating overwhelm. ... Louise’s recommendations: Raakhee - @easypeasygreeny Just F*cking Do It: Stop Playing Small. Transform Your Life by Noor Hibbert ... Connect with Louise at: Website Instagram FB Group - Magick & Momentum - soul-led spiritual support | Facebook ... Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

Erin is a book consultant and editor who has worked for traditional trade publishers for nearly 20 years. Bad books hurt her soul. (I’ll take that as a compliment as she worked with me on Falling Off The Ladder) Erin started out selling books in a bookshop and has worked across most areas of publishing including editorial, commissioning, production and sales. She is passionate about bringing ideas into the world and supporting authors to create books that will have an impact and change lives. She is the founder of the Write Now Experiment - writing accountability spaces where she writes with you and is on hand to answer your writing and publishing questions, which also happens to be the space in which I wrote most of Falling Off The Ladder. I also went on to hire Erin as my mentor through the writing process and as my editor. Born in Sydney, Australia, now in London, she’s a mum to three, and loves to lift heavy weights and hates to run. Today we’re talking about going from hiring freelancers to being one, toxic workplaces, the power of writing a book for your business, and the mindset you need to write the book within you. Erin’s recommendations: Lisa Barry Helen Pritchard Isabelle Knight Katie Sadler …. Connect with Erin at: Website Facebook LinkedIn Instagram ... Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Katie Skelton, a Business Visibility Mentor and the founder of Little Green Duck. She helps business owners who care about more than just profit to be seen, attract opportunities and make an impact, without feeling overwhelmed or doing anything that doesn't feel right for your business or for you as a human being. Katie's mission is to make a positive impact, and help as many other businesses as possible to do the same. Her business nemesis is the word "should". Katie lives in the New Forest with her husband and two children. She loves the sea and salt & vinegar crisps. You know she really likes you if she actually shares her sharing bag with you. Today we’re talking about the power of having a business with purpose, establishing a friendly brand face, attracting opportunities, finding support in your business, and the ups and downs of social media. ... Katie’s recommendations: Alexis Bushnell - Instagram and Social media for humans Book: Do Open by David Hieatt Connect with Katie at: The Little Green Duck website LinkedIn Instagram Join the FREE networking events ... Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Giles Metcalfe. Giles is an Ethical Freelance Digital Marketing specialist who puts the person before the sale. He’s active in many freelance communities including Freelance Heroes, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Good Business Charter (GBC) & The Ethical Move. A Freelance Digital Marketing Specialist for over 7 years, he enables you to sell products & services to people via various digital marketing channels and delivers increased website traffic via Pay Per Click (PPC), social media engagement, ROI (return on investment) and ROAS (return on ad spend). He’s an Aspie Male and generously contributed his story to my book, Falling Off The Ladder. We're chatting about neurodiversity, reasonable adjustments, and getting the most out of your work life as a freelancer with Aspergers. ...... Giles’s recommendations: Emma Cownley Louise Harman Sam Agnew ☀️ and Good Business Charter The Ethical Move Carbon Trap Org Sonia Rosenblatt Danny Matthews Alison Phillips and BEAM Natural Bodycare ...... Connect with Giles at: LinkedIn Giles Metcalfe Digital ... Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Claire Stephenson, owner of The Write Type. Claire is an accredited public relations professional and media strategist, specialising in creative communications and solid strategies for the public and third sectors. She has written professionally for over 20 years and is a member of the National Union of Journalists. Prior to Brexit, Claire spent time working within European Parliament for the European Greens as Press & Broadcast Media Lead for the North West, focussing on renewable energy and sustainability campaigns. Claire creates communications and stakeholder engagement campaigns for organisations, including for Vivienne Westwood and her son, Joe Corré’s Talk Fracking national campaign. Today we’re talking about fighting for causes you care about, burnout, and embracing slow living and the self-employed lifestyle. ...... Claire’s recommendations: Freelancer Magazine Untamed by Glennon Doyle Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert Connect with Claire at: The Write Type website LinkedIn Twitter Instagram Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Sally Fox. Sally is a freelance copywriter specialising in brand voice strategy, copy and content for ethical and sustainable businesses. She’s written for a circular system furniture designer, a zero waste deodorant brand and several women’s social enterprises. Sally not only writes for sustainable businesses, she’s spent the last four years building one. Learning as she goes along, she channels ideas and inspiration into her monthly newsletter, The Right Place. Sally lives in between Spain and the UK. She spends her time cooking, reading and walking Dolly the dog. Her guilty pleasure is waving at the end of Zoom calls. Were chatting about creating a sustainable small business, how you can reduce the environmental impact of your business, increase the social impact of your business and ways to look after ourselves better. ...... Sally’s recommendations: Sian Conway - #Ethical Hour The Green FIx - newsletter and Twitter Good on You Below Radar - Dave Smyth Amy Nolan - VA Ink Sophie Cross Megan Rose Douglas Dan Nelkin - Self-help guide for copywriters Kaye Jones - Herstorian Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Graeme Piper, owner of Drop Cap Copy. He’s a freelance copywriter from South Devon, creating effective B2B and B2C copywriting that’s written for people, not personas. Graeme keeps his business purposely small and works alongside a bunch of super-talented creative agencies and lots of amazing SMEs to write copy that engages, informs, and (often) entertains for websites, blogs, brochures, and general offline and online marketing. His aim is to keep the copy simple, conversational, and natural. So simplifying the complex, kicking out the jargon, and making it easy to read. We're chatting about getting started as a freelancer, not freaking out with the rollercoaster of self-employment (due to too much or too little work), staying a company of one and celebrating the wins (however big or small). ...... Graeme’s recommendations: Gareth Hancock - That. Content. Shed. Being Freelance community & Steve Folland Connect with Graeme at: Drop Cap Copy Website LinkedIn Twitter Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.

My guest in this episode is Dr Lizzy Bernthal - a resilience specialist, confidence and leadership coach, cultural change expert, and international speaker and author. She designs and delivers masterclasses, workshops, and transformational 121 and group coaching programmes - all on a global scale. After 25 years in the Army as a health professional and senior officer, and with a PhD in psychological wellbeing, Dr Lizzy is on a mission to remove toxicity in the workplace. This is through supporting female authentic leaders to find the confidence, resilience and awesomeness already within them so that they find their voice in the boardroom as they move from powerful to empowered. We’re talking about toxicity in the workplace, resilience, creating a legacy, and developing resilience and confidence. .......... Lizzy’s recommendations: For: Identifying vision and purpose - Simon Sinek Courage and leadership - Brené Brown Female entrepreneurship - Carrie Green Money Mindset - Catherine Morgan Guidance on running a business - Tony Robbins Resources: The Power of Why - Simon Sinek Who Not How - Dan Sullivan Sign up for All Together Different - the event at which Dr Lizzy is speaking on 24th June. (You can sign up to virtual or in-person tickets). You can also hear both of us speak at the FREE event Confidence Leads to Success: Empowering Women One Story At A Time Connect with Lizzy at: Release Your Potential website LinkedIn Don't forget to sign up to the Last Rung newsletter for more fortnightly tips, inspiration and chats with those who have been there and tested the waters for you.